


A Whiff of Strawberries and Coffee

by LHVP_me



Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Friendship, Na Jaemin-centric, Romance, University, na jaemin huang renjun lee jeno are best friends
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-03-30
Updated: 2020-07-02
Packaged: 2021-03-01 02:55:46
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 8,639
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23387731
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LHVP_me/pseuds/LHVP_me
Summary: Life is weird. One day, you’ll just wake up and realize that you have to try not to stand out too much so that you can avoid trouble. At a young age, I learned how to be extra careful around others and be overly considerate. Even if I know the water is poisoned and someone still asks me to prove it, I’ll drink it.  I’m foolishly considerate.I don’t know how things started. I just saw the world as something dark. In order to protect yourself, you have to act like a fool.So, why is it that I still end up getting hurt? Why is it that I still end up being alone?
Relationships: Na Jaemin/Jung Dabin (OC), Na Jaemin/Original Female Character(s)
Kudos: 4





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Basically, this story has two timelines. The past (from when they met until their breakup) and the present (from when they met again until ???)

The world was a cold, cold place. There was no one to lean on, no one to depend on. Everyone was cold and distant, like a stranger in the middle of a snowstorm. It was like a strong perfume. The scent would be overwhelming during the first sniff and hopefully, the strong smell would subside soon. Dabin hated that but she had long accepted that. She just had to keep quiet and pretend that no one could notice her presence. She let her trolley bag roll as she carefully trudged into the huge dormitory with her heavy backpack on her bag. It was not her first time being there—she already brought some of her stuff over the other day but she was still nervous. It was her dream university after all. She went through the eye of a needle just to enter that university.

Korea Ace University is a university reserved for the brightest and richest people in Asia—the only ones in between were the scholars, like Dabin. Unlike what one would see in those sappy dramas, students who were receiving scholarship were actually treated like they just saved the world because they were usually the most brilliant ones. Dabin had no idea how she became one of them, she did not pass the exam but instead entered through some special recommendations and some essays that she wrote.

“You’ve arrived?” Dabin was a bit startled when she saw her older sister waiting for her inside their shared room. Unlike Dabin who was wearing an oversize yellow Winnie the Pooh shirt paired with worn out jeans and platform sneakers that she was trying to remove, the older was wearing a plain white shirt and a pair of comfortable black training pants along with a white fluffy slippers. “Why didn’t you text me? I could’ve helped you carry your bags,” the older scolded the younger although she did not stand up from where she was seated—on the chair in front of a study table.

Dabin shook her head, chuckling as she closed the door behind her after she successfully discarded her shoes. “It’s not heavy,” she replied with her usual smile.

“Daye, your sister have arrived?” As if on cue, a female appeared from the bathroom. She was wearing a pink pig pajama dress and her face had a moisturizing face mask. Nevertheless, she sounded so elated when she turned to Dabin. “Hi, Daye’s little sister! I’m Choi Yuna, Daye’s best friend and roommate. From now on, you’ll be my roommate as well. Sojung, our other roommate is not here yet but she’s looking forward on meeting you.”

Dabin smiled, a bit overwhelmed by the welcoming atmosphere that Yuna created. She was a bit taken aback. “Ah, me too,” she said, sounding hesitant but her smile never left her face.

“She does not speak that much,” Dabin’s sister, Daye, explained when Yuna looked a bit taken aback by Dabin’s lack of response and enthusiasm.

Yuna shrugged, smiling at Dabin before turning to Daye. “She looks like a really nice person though. Anyway, I have to take off my mask. Talk to you guys later.” With that, she set off, returning to the bathroom where she was once at.

Without another word, Dabin shuffled to the lower bunk bed at the left side of the room. It was reserved for her. She knew that her elder sister claimed the upper bunk while the other two girls occupied the bunk bed at the right. She was really lucky that the former roommate had already transferred to another university because of failing grades—not that she wished that stranger harm, she was just feeling lucky.

“The one who used to occupy that bed was Hara. She left the university last semester. Yuna’s bed was used to be Seungyeon’s but they switched because Yuna desperately wanted to be with me and Sojung,” Daye told Dabin even if they both knew the older had talked about it plenty of times before.

Still, Dabin chuckled as if it was her first time hearing it. “Ah…” She smiled as she gently took off her stuff. She had nothing else to say.

A few seconds later, the front door opened revealing a tall girl with a skinny body. But her face was really pretty. She had this tall nose, sparkling eyes, and cherry red lips. She was wearing a plain back shirt and a pair of skinny jeans but she looked like she just came back from a photo shoot. Not to mention her tall height despite wearing flats.  
“Oh, Dabin,” the newcomer sweetly called as if they were not strangers to one another.

“Don’t scare her off,” Yuna chimed in, coming out of the bathroom but this time, without her face mask.

The newcomer—whom Dabin assumed to be Sojung—frowned at Yuna. “You’re the scary one, not me.” She rolled her eyes. “Anyway, it’s nice to meet you, Dabin!”  
“You guys are bunch of weirdos,” Daye sneered but she chuckled anyway at her friends’ antics.

Dabin let out a small laugh too. “It’s nice to meet you guys too,” she replied as she continued to arrange her stuff.

“By the way,” Sojung started, walking over to the other lower bunk bed and sitting down. “Aren’t you guys excited? Jaemin along with Jeno and Renjun are finally in college! It’s nice to breathe the same air as them again,” she spoke as if she just announced the most exciting news.

While Dabin froze at the mention of a familiar name, Yuna’s face showed true excitement and delight. And of course, Daye looked utterly confused—probably wondering why she should be excited about meeting a stranger around the university.

“I was going to say ‘even if you did not come from Ace High School, I’m pretty sure you would know who they are’ but knowing Daye, I would rather just explain,” Sojung stated when she noticed Daye’s expression, chuckling at her friend.

“She’s only interested in codes and Anime. She could not care less about a human boy.” Yuna rolled her eyes. “But it is still very weird for me to gush about younger guys even if it’s just one year different.” Then, she turned to Dabin. “Then again, Dabin is the same age at them so I guess it’s fine.” 

“Before you diss me, why don’t you explain who those people are first?” Daye chimed in.

Sojung laughed, clapping her hands before talking again. “Okay, okay. Jaemin is my favorite boy because I like his smile. He’s the only heir to the Heirloom Perfume and Soap Collection. You know, that famous line of luxury perfumes and soaps? They created the most expensive perfume and soap that until now, only two people had purchased even if it was launched a year ago because it is expensive. He’s extremely smart, crowned as Asia’s Math Olympiad champion for three consecutive years during high school and one of the best ones in Chemistry. He may seem like a nerd but he used to represent his middle school in track and field. But he’s not the one who is amazing, Jeno is the heir of Samsung. He is a genius when it comes to Science and electronics. He had won multiple competitions that has something to do with both and won in Robotics Competition in Japan last year, the first one in Korea to do so. Renjun is the heir to Asia’s Hospital that is now expanding all over the world. He excels in Biology and is the youngest researcher of medicines in the whole World. Even WHO is trying to hire him, I heard.”

“You know quite a lot,” Daye commented. “Wish you know just as much on our exam.”

Daye’s comment made both Yuna and Sojung laugh because as usual, Daye was so blunt. However, Dabin remained quiet. She was not surprised with the facts but she was not willing to talk about those people either. Many things happened before and she was not ready to talk about those.

“You should probably stop talking about boys, Sojung,” Yuju said. “Your Hyundai heir of a boyfriend would not be pleased to know that you gush about young boys.” She laughed at her own choice of words.

Sojung laughed along. “My boyfriend knows that I giggle about those cute boys and he does not really mind. Those guys are unattainable although they probably did have several girlfriends because they look like the type to date anyone. They’re such sweet-talkers.”

Yuna grunted. “So, you mean, despite all those busy schedules, they got to date while I only had three almost-boyfriends but never officially got one. Even Daye had one with that attitude of hers!” 

Dabin chuckled along with the laughing Sojung as they all turned to the nonchalant Daye. Of course Dabin knew her sister had a boyfriend. Her older sister told her everything—even until how she cried during the break up and how painful it was.

“He called her a geek who only loves computers so she broke up with him,” Yuna hollered. “I cannot even imagine how sudden that was! And she was the one who cried!” She continued to laugh.

“Well, he’s a jerk. I knew I had to end it with him,” Daye explained. 

“Dabin,” Sojung called Dabin, probably noticing that the youngest is not talking that much. “Do you have a boyfriend? You must have one!”

“That…” Dabin trailed off, a bit hesitant to tell them especially her older sister. But the three girls’ attention was already on her. She just had to respond. “We broke up already.”  
“Eh?! You had a boyfriend?!” It was Daye who exclaimed, surprised that her sister had a boyfriend—and that they broke up. “Why didn’t I know about it? When did you break up? How long did your relationship last? Oh my goodness, you have to tell me. Did you cry? What was your reaction?”

“It’s a break up, of course it’s painful,” Yuna commented.

Daye turned to Yuna with a raised eyebrow. “It’s Dabin we’re talking about, she rarely showed any other emotion except for a smiley face since we were young.” After speaking, she turned to her younger sister again, prompting the latter to speak.

“Well,” Dabin started, scratching her nape. “I didn’t tell you. We dated for seven or eight months. We broke up about a year ago. I accepted the break up so I’m fine.”  
Before the others could further urge Dabin to talk about it more, they heard the loud sound of the speakers. It announced that they all had to be at the lobby to listen to the rules and regulations of the dormitory. The topic was dropped and forgotten but Dabin was still clinging onto it.

===

Of course, it was painful. The break up was. It was not like Dabin entered her first relationship being ready for the separation. And although she did anticipate it to happen sooner or later, it was still painful. She could not manage to repel the pain. Then again, the people around her did not have to know that. They did not need to know that she cried herself to sleep and that she lost her appetite, skipping meals by pretending that she was busy. Letting out a heavy sigh, she continued to walk along the busy hallway—her ponytailed black hair swayed as she did—to go to her first class for the day and as a college student.

“Dabin!” The female turned around when a familiar voice called her name. From afar, she saw her close friend, Sera, running towards her with another girl tailing closely behind.  
“Sera,” Dabin smiled in relief, seeing someone familiar. And she was engulfed in a bear hug.

“We’re finally studying at the same school for the first time since Kindergarten,” Sera said in glee, pulling away from Dabin. “I’ve waited for this moment for forever! By the way, this is Akiyama Hina,” she introduced Dabin to the other girl with a smile. “And Hina, this is Dabin. She’s my best friend. Her mom is my mom’s best friend too!”

“It’s nice to meet you, Dabin. Sera kept on talking about you so I figured that you’re a nice person,” Hina told Dabin with a friendly smile playing on her lips. “I hope we get along well too.”

Dabin nodded her head, smiling softly. “Same here.”

Sera let out a giggle. “She doesn’t talk much, Hina. I told you that already. You cannot force her to just speak.” She shook her head in disapproval at Hina before turning to Dabin again. “Where’s your first class?”

Dabin took out her phone and showed her schedule to Sera. “I think it’s somewhere near here.”

“Let’s go together,” Sera suggested, leading the way while still casting a glance towards Dabin. “Our class is near that classroom. It’s a pity that we don’t take the same class and we’re not taking the same course but this is good enough, right?”

Dabin nodded her head, smiling. She was really glad to see a friend amidst all the unfamiliar faces. Plus, she needed distraction from thinking about her ex-boyfriend no one even knew existed. Happily, she listened to the conversation of Sera and Hina—she was not talking, she was just listening but she was included nevertheless. She was happy with that.  
It must have been because she was in an overly stereotypical land of rich students that caused her to bump—hard—into someone in the middle of the hallway while she was not paying attention. Luckily, she did not fall down because that person supported her body and steadied her.

“Sor—” She cut herself off when she pulled away from the supposedly stranger who was terrifyingly familiar. It was a male, a bit thin but a lot taller than she was. He looked gentle, his eyes were sparkling. However, the look of gentleness gradually changed and was replaced with a cold expression—something unfamiliar on him along with his pink hair. It pained Dabin seeing the familiar face with an unfamiliar expression. “Sorry,” she apologized anyway, refusing to meet the cold pair of eyes.

“Watch where you’re going,” the man coldly hissed, walking pass Dabin and purposely bumping into her right shoulder in the process. Two more males followed him not before bowing to Dabin in apology, looking utterly confused.

Dabin’s eyes remained glued on the floor, afraid that she would cry although she did force herself to remain smiling as if nothing was wrong. She wondered if she was doing a great job though.

“That’s Jaemin. What’s wrong with him?” Sera was frowning as she watched the man—Jaemin—disappear to the crowd. “He didn’t have to be that rude. I mean, he was not that rude before. When I confessed a few months ago, he was no way near rude even when rejecting me. Dabin, don’t mind him, it must be his man period.”

Hina let out a laugh. “Man period? What on Earth is that even?”

“Jaem—I mean, you confessed to him?” Dabin asked Sera, her eyes finally leaving the ground. She tried to hide her surprise because she did not want her feelings to come out.

Sera nodded her head. “Yes. I told you, right? I confessed to the guy I liked but he rejected me just because. I wonder if he has or at least had a girlfriend. They must be having a lover’s spat because he’s very rude right now.” She rolled her eyes. “Enough about Jaemin, let’s just head to the classroom first. We do not want to be late just because of him, right?”

Dabin responded by nodding her head. She cast one more look at the hallway where Jaemin disappeared into and the bittersweet aftertaste of what happened enveloped her mouth. She did not know that it would feel like that to be honest. She thought she would not be that affected. She was wrong because she felt it—the heavy feeling she thought she was long over with.

That was how it felt, huh?

That was how meeting your ex-boyfriend felt, huh?

It sucked. It really did, especially if you, yourself, knew you were not over him just yet.


	2. Chapter 1.5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Of how they met...

It was one rainy morning. Many people did not want to leave the comfort of their houses and blankets. That was why cafés and the likes were unusually really quiet.

Dabin did not hate people. She was just fine around them but she was better without them so she always studied in a library café alone. She always studied there yet she had never been happier when she realized that she had almost the whole café for herself—she just had to share with that lady who was preparing for her civil service exam. She was more than pleased to have the place by herself, her braided black hair was a mess but she could care less about that. If only every day could rain like that, she would probably live in that café.

It was not until another hour when three more people had decided to join the two loners inside the cozy café. Two of which was a mushy teenage couple (Dabin had to cringe) who came in for a date and the other one was a tall—he was probably average but for the 160 cm Dabin, he was definitely tall—teenage guy who came by himself. The teenage guy might have been handsome, Dabin would probably know if she paid more attention to the newcomers. But, she definitely gave more attention to the comic book that she was reading (although she tried to convince herself that she should be studying instead; in her defense, she was only in her first year of high school). A few minutes later, she had already finished reading the second volume that was why albeit lazy, she had to stand up from her seat just to grab the next volume.

The shelves were not as tidy as they should be. Usually, such occurrence would not tick Dabin off but that was because she was usually not affected. That day, however, the comic book she wanted to read was placed at the topmost shelf as if teasing her average height. She could probably reach it through tiptoeing and stretching her arms as far as she could—or do something sensible like asking the staff for help. But Dabin had always been allergic to sensible or asking for help. In the end, she was left with only one option which was obviously to do everything by herself.

She jumped, she hopped, and she stretched. Her efforts paid off when she actually managed to grab the book that she wanted—except another book came tumbling down, hitting her face without a warning. She almost let out a yelp but she just ended up shutting her eyes tight.

There was a soft chuckle coming from behind her but she refused to even turn back. “Are you okay?” She heard the person ask.

“Y-yes,” Dabin replied before quickly turning to the person. Indeed, it was the handsome guy who just came—it was not even her first time seeing him but she just realized that he was, indeed, handsome. His gaze showed that he was amused but made no effort to ridicule the female. Nevertheless, with one rapid bow, she turned away as fast as she could and returned to her table.

\-------------------------------------------------------------------

Their first meeting was not very eventful. Instead, it really was their second meeting that convinced the female that the guy reminded her of a Gourmand scent. He was sweet, really, really sweet.

Although Dabin was a regular at the café, she had rarely met the boy and it was not like she was looking for him either. What actually changed their relationship for good was probably their second encounter, about two or three weeks after their first. It was also a normal day, just a bit sunnier and brighter than usual. Like what she would always do, she was seated on her favorite spot, reading a comic book while sipping on her strawberry milkshake. She was not bothered by the fact that people had started filling in the café, occupying all the empty seats. She would have remained not bothered still, if only she did not hear the voice of one of the staffs, speaking to someone in an apologetic manner.

“There are no more seats available, sir,” the woman spoke.

Dabin gulped, pretending to not have eavesdropped. She looked at her half-finished drink with a frown. That was already her second cup of milkshake and she had been in the café for at least two hours. About four people also had to leave the café because of the lack of available seats. Pretending to not hear anything was getting more and more difficult especially when she knew that she was occupying a seat for two.

Gathering her things, she was ready to leave. As she did so, she failed to notice the tall figure approaching her.

“Can I share the table with you?” Dabin was startled when someone spoke to her.

As if to confirm, Dabin looked up and saw a familiar guy smiling at her. His eyes were twinkling as he did so and he looked somehow genuine. If there was anything noticeable, it was his good looks—wide dark brown eyes, high nose, and thin lips, not to mention his smile. 

“I’m l-leaving a-anyway,” Dabin managed to stutter out her reply, looking anywhere but at the boy.

“But you haven’t finished your drink yet, and your comic book,” the stranger pointed out, making the female look at him. “Are you sure that you want to leave now? I won’t even bother you.” He looked like he was nearly sulking, probably feeling bad that someone had to leave just so he could sit.

Dabin did not want that—she did not want others to feel bad because of her choices. Therefore, she once again settled down comfortably on her chair while the boy slid down on his seat and rested his cup of coffee on the table.

The male drank from his coffee with a satisfied smile on his face. “Coffee is delicious, don’t you think?” Of course, there was no response but a smile from the female. “Do you always come here?”

“Yes, my school is not too far from here.”

“Ahh… do you dorm around here? My school is also near here, I dorm inside the campus though.”

“I also dorm in my school.”

Somehow, they started talking. It was mostly the boy who was speaking but both of them got really comfortable with each other’s presence right away.

“My name is Na Jaemin, let’s get along well.”


	3. Chapter 2

She did not want anything to do with Jaemin anymore, Dabin decided. First of all, they were long over. Second of all, she did not know if she could handle being around him without telling him how much she missed him—as cheesy as that might have sounded. The Gourmand had already lost its sweetness, it was scary. Anyway, she was lucky that the university campus was big, big enough to keep her from bumping to him. She heaved a sigh of relief as she entered the classroom of her last class for the day. Just a bit more and she could finally say that she survived her first day in college.

Maybe it was also because she was taking International Studies and she knew that Jaemin would not be taking the same course as her that she was so confident that she would not have to see him.

Not wanting any unwanted attention in such a large class, she settled herself on a seat in the middle of the middle row. She then took out her phone to read some online comics while she waited for her professor to arrive. Maybe she should have just focused more on her comic, maybe she shouldn’t have looked up in the first place because when she did look up, she saw a familiar figure striding into the classroom, looking for an available seat in the midst of the lecture hall.

Staring was a bad habit Dabin did not want to develop. However, she couldn’t seem to look away from the figure of the man she knew. As if knowing that she was watching him, he turned to look at her, meeting eyes with her with that unreadable eyes of his. He looked surprised, sure, but that was quickly masked with the expression that the female could not read. The female, of course, was the first one to break the eye contact. She did not want to look at him any longer. She decided to play dumb even after she felt him sit on the empty seat behind her—completely unbothered like a stranger she had never seen before.

Dabin wetted her lips, trying to act as natural as possible. She did not want to appear anxious in front of him, she wanted to show him that she was completely unaffected even if he was breathing right behind her. Albeit desiring to remove all her concern for the boy, a huge part of her regretted the fact that she did not even bother to tie her hair in a proper ponytail and she was stuck in sporting a messy one. Of all required subjects and classes, he just had to choose to be in that one. Awkwardly, she reached for her hair and tried to straighten it using her hands and fingers. She could even feel his eyes on her and that scared her to be honest, in case she would look like a fool (and she bet she was actually already doing a great job on looking like one).

“Student Jung Dabin,” the lecturer repeated, trying to get the attendance for the first day.

Dabin jolted, she did not even notice that the old man had arrived and started to take the attendance. Someone tapped her shoulder and whispered, “He’s calling you, quickly raise your hand.”

The female immediately did what she was told, startled that Jaemin had talked to her. When the lecturer proceeded to call someone else, Dabin timidly turned around to look at Jaemin but he was already looking somewhere else, acting like nothing had happened—something that the female should be doing.

Heaving an inward sigh, the female turned to the lecturer to actually listen to what he was going to say on the first day of lessons—although at the back of her head, she was wondering if she could switch classes so that she would not have to bump into Jaemin anymore.

“The attendance only matters during the first day of school, examination days, and the last meeting,” the lecturer announced. “For the rest of the days, I won’t bother to get your attendance. Whether you want to go to class or not, that will be up to you.”

Dabin’s tensed shoulders finally relaxed. She could just skip classes and she would not have to deal with Jaemin every single time they had class. She almost smiled, things were still being nice to her.

Perhaps, Dabin should have known better than to tell Sera which lecture hall she was in and to inform her best friend that she had nothing to do after because by the time class was done, Sera, along with Hina and two guys, were already waiting for her outside the classroom.

“How can he dismiss you at six-twelve when his class time is only up to six?” Sera was the one who spoke immediately after she grabbed Dabin by the wrist before the latter could even walk away—she was trying to leave before Jaemin, you see.

“What are you doing?” Dabin asked, referring to Sera’s hand that was on her left wrist.

“Let’s eat dinner,” Hina replied for Sera. “It turns out these guys would grab their dinner too so we decided to eat with them.” She ushered at the two boys who smiled at Dabin when she turned to them.

The two boys were equally good-looking. The taller one had a sharper feature but his bright eye smile told otherwise as it made him more approachable. He had a black hair that adorned his sharp feature. The shorter one had a softer appearance, looking gentler as he smiled—his eyes disappearing as he did so too. His brown hair with a hint of orange made him look like an adorable kid.

“What are you guys up to?” A familiar cheerful voice made Dabin turn back, she just had to because she had not heard of that in a while—she was welcomed by his unfamiliar cold voice anyway. She actually had to control her expression to not look that surprise that Jaemin sounded cheerful. But, as soon as she looked at him, she turned back to the other four people.

“Let’s eat dinner with Hina and Sera and their friend—” the shorter guy trailed off.

“Dabin, its Dabin,” the taller guy cut off, snorting at the shorter boy. “Sera kept on babbling that name. Injun, you should learn how to remember names.”

“How about remembering how to pronounce ‘Renjun’ properly first?” the shorter guy retorted.

“We’re not here to listen to your argument. That’s not leaving Dabin any good impression at all,” Sera pointed out. “Although she might not have any good impression because Jaemin was so rude to her earlier this morning.” To Dabin’s discomfort, Sera decided to bring up what happened earlier that day. “Jaemin,” Sera called out to Jaemin. “You should at least apologize. Even if she does not speak that much, she is probably hurt by that.”

Dabin swallowed her small gasp. When she felt like Jaemin might speak up, she immediately opened her mouth. “I… it’s really fine, really. It was an accident, really, because i-it was my fault for not paying attention. That’s why it’s really fine. He can get angry. It’s okay.” She felt like a fool, shaking her head and her hands in denial as she stuttered out an explanation.

The others chuckled—except for Jaemin, that was, because she clearly felt him tense behind her despite the obvious distance between their bodies.

“You’re so adorable, Dabin,” Sera cooed, pinching both of Dabin’s cheeks. “You do not have to deny it so strongly. Okay, okay, I understand. We’re going to forgive Jaemin now and in return, he has to pay for our dinner! Sounds great, right?”

“Deal!” Of course, Dabin did not agree but everyone else did, even Jaemin.

“Do I have a choice? If that was what you wanted, you should have just said so in the beginning, Sera. You didn’t have to make me feel guilty about something,” Jaemin chuckled. Dabin could almost see his grin just by hearing him talk. “Just name a restaurant and we’ll drive to that right away.”

Sera stuck her tongue out at Jaemin. “Okay, so, boys take your own cars while us, girls, will ride mine. See you at the newly opened restaurant downtown.”

The six of them somehow ended up being in an overly fancy restaurant about fifteen minute drive away the campus. Dabin was kind of worried that they did not reserve a table but she was reminded that she was going to have dinner with five people from influential families—Jaemin’s friends turned out to be the Renjun and Jeno who Daye’s friends had told her about; Sera was the daughter of the President of MBC; Hina was the daughter of the owner of Japan’s largest malls. Face passport was indeed heavier than any reservation.

They found themselves situated in a peaceful corner of the restaurant, hanging above them was a crystal chandelier which probably cost more than Dabin could imagine. All around were known personalities and sons and daughters of huge people—Dabin actually felt out of place, especially when she was wearing her blue Doraemon shirt paired with her black skinny jeans and a pair of worn-out walking shoes. The other five were entirely different because even if they just came from the University, they wore designer clothes.

“Their seafood pasta is the best,” Hina pointed out. “My sister said so since she tried this out yesterday with her boyfriend. It’s a must-try, she said.”

“I read about that too in a blog,” Sera voiced out her agreement.

“I didn’t know you read, Sera,” the taller one of Jaemin’s friend (who introduced himself as Lee Jeno before they left the University) teased Sera.

“For your information, I do read. I am, after all, a drama major,” Sera boasted, puffing her chest proudly.

“The only drama you do is fighting with all the girls back in high school,” Jeno commented, making the others laugh (it was actually Hina who was doubling over with laughter because she witnessed it firsthand and Dabin was merely chuckling because she simply heard about it from Sera).

Sera groaned, glaring at Jeno. “I seriously want to poke your eyes right now. Why are you seated across me in the first place?”

It was purely accidental—Dabin threw a glance at the person in front of her before adverting her gaze back to the bickering pair. The girls were the first once to settle down their seats, courtesy of Sera who occupied the middle chair, followed by the boys. Renjun followed the suit and sat on the nearest chair which was coincidentally across Hina. Jeno did the same, sitting on the second nearest chair. Jaemin, the last one to finish parking his car, was left with no choice but to sit across Dabin (although he did seem hesitant at first, he shrugged it off soon).

“Change seats with Dabin or Hina then,” Jeno nonchalantly told Sera.

“And let them suffer because of you? No thanks,” Sera snorted.

“Are we all going to have seafood pasta?” Renjun looked rather impatient when he spoke, probably getting too tired of the seemingly endless banter of the pair.

“I guess,” Hina tried to answer for everyone, looking around as if trying to get everyone’s attention.

Dabin remained quiet even if she felt Jaemin’s gaze on her, albeit for a few seconds only, and stared at her fingers as if it was her first time seeing them. She did not voice out her opinion, she felt no need to do so since everyone else seemed to be very excited about the seafood pasta they were getting. It was when Jaemin’s gaze finally left her figure that she managed to be much calmer.

Jaemin, with a smile on his face, finally spoke up, no longer playing the quiet card—to Dabin’s relief because she actually thought that Jaemin was being quiet because he disliked her presence. “I want to try the steak too. I’ll have a serving of it.”

“We just ate one for lunch.” Renjun gave the former a look as if judging him.

The pink-haired guy simply shrugged and raised both of his hands in a gesture of mock surrender. “Don’t judge me, you know how I love meat. I love steaks.”

Everyone else but Dabin chuckled at Jaemin’s statement. They knew Jaemin’s love for food, particularly meat. Dabin did too—she had witnessed it firsthand and it was indeed amusing, only, she did not know if she was even allowed to chuckle at him since they were not friends nor acquaintances.

“Fair enough,” Jeno mumbled, shrugging his shoulders.

“But as for everyone else,” Hina trailed off, trying to take note what everyone wanted to get. “Seafood pasta is good enough, right?”

There was a collective reply of agreement, coming from everyone while Dabin simply watched. She did not have to say anything, things would be just fine. She could only dumbly watch as Sera called the waiter over, ordering a strange-named food, which Dabin assumed to be the pasta, Jaemin’s steak, red ice tea for everyone and not to forget, ice cream cakes to be served later.

“You know, I’m thinking of switching courses,” Sera immediately spoke when the waiter left, saying that their foods would be ready in fifteen minutes. “Like, maybe drama is not for me. Should I just study business? What do you guys think?”

“You should have thought about what you actually wanted. You’re wasting your time if you do not even like drama in the first place,” Jaemin told Sera.

“I know.” Sera sighed. “I like drama too but now, I guess I do not like it that much?” She looked unsure so she turned to Dabin as if pleading for help.

Dabin had known Sera since they were little and although the latter was so talkative, there were times when one had to know Sera’s nonverbal cues to know what she wanted. Dabin knew exactly what the other female needed—reassurance. “You’ll be fine.” The former almost squeaked, feeling awkward that she had to speak more than she deemed necessary. “It’s only the first day, Sera. You’re probably just confused. Give it a few weeks—or months—before you decide.”

Sera hesitated before smiling widely. “You always know what to say, Dabin.”

“That’s like the most I have heard from her,” Renjun chimed in, sounding amused.

“She doesn’t talk that much,” Sera explained for Dabin. “She only speaks when she deems it as a necessity.”

“I guess someone has to learn from her,” Jeno muttered but loud enough for everyone to hear. That was, once again, a cue for the playful banter for the two to begin.

Dabin could only watch in amusement, chuckling from time to time. As she did so, she could not help but to sneak a glance at the guy in front of her who was also smiling at his friends. He was still as handsome as he was a few months ago. The only difference was, perhaps, solely his newly dyed hair which was a mixture of pink and orange. And if there was another difference, it must have been his attitude towards Dabin. Maybe, it would have been too much to ask for him to be friendly towards her or to at least cast a genuine smile towards her.

She was so deep in her thought that she was only brought back to reality when the waiter finally came with their order on his tray. He was professional, laying their own plates of foods on their table—with Jaemin having two plates before him because he requested to have both served right away.

The pasta looked appetizing; covered with red spaghetti sauce and topped with shrimps, squids and several other ingredients, one could not mistake it to be anything less than a four-star restaurant. The only problem was seeing it alone made Dabin nauseous, plus, she wanted to cry just by thinking about the rashes that might come later. This was so in contrast with how she felt seeing Jaemin’s mouthwatering steak which he so conveniently placed next to him and within Dabin’s sight as he started eating his pasta.

“Why aren’t you eating yet? It looks so great, right? I also don’t want to eat it right away but my tummy has been asking for it.” Sera nudged Dabin to get her attention.

“Y-yeah,” Dabin almost absentmindedly replied, twirling her fork to finally eat the pasta.

I can just take my medicine later. Jaemin is going to pay for this too, I shouldn’t waste it.

She slowly pulled her fork closer to her mouth. Before she could manage to actually feed herself with the pasta, she was startled because of the sound of a glass hitting the table—not strong enough for it to break into pieces though. She did not gasp at that, no, yet she did gasp about the fact that her pasta was already swimming in ice tea. In shock, she also happened to drop back her fork on her plate. For a good three seconds, she stared at her plate.

“I’m sorry,” Jaemin muttered although he did not sound apologetic at all—at least to Dabin.

Dabin snapped her head up to look at him, feeling betrayed. Maybe, he hated her that much. Maybe, he did not even want to see her eating in front of him—or worse, he might not have wanted her to even breathe in his presence. Negative thoughts filled Dabin’s mind that she just wanted to cry even if she remained calm and collected outside. She so badly wanted to drag Jaemin somewhere private and yell at him for making her feel more like a loser than she already did.

“What the hell, Na Jaemin,” Sera spat, annoyed that Dabin was not able to eat the pasta.

“It was an accident,” Jaemin countered, handing Dabin a piece of tissue as if that would help the situation (the female still accepted the tissue though). “As an apology, she can have my steak,” he declared, replacing the plate of pasta with his own plate of steak. Then, he signaled the waiter nearby to clean the mess.

“I thought you wanted steak,” Jeno butted in. “Should we just order a new serving of pasta for her?”

“That would take a good ten to fifteen minutes to serve. We’ll be done by then,” Jaemin stated. “Plus, I don’t think my stomach can handle the steak after eating this pasta.” He pointed at his plate.

Dabin was pretty sure that the second part was a lie, Jaemin had a huge appetite. The first part was highly plausible—Jaemin did not want to waste his time dealing with her so he gave her his food which made sense because either way, he would end up paying. But, Dabin did not want to take anything from Jaemin anymore. She did not want to be indebted to him. “N-no, I’m fine. I don’t have to eat.” 

Renjun laughed. “What kind of person does not have to eat? It’s okay, take Jaemin’s food. He is to blame why you have no pasta anymore.”

“It’s a pity that she wouldn’t taste such a great pasta though,” Hina said. “I think we should order another serving just for her.”

The others immediately agreed except for Jaemin who had a disapproving expression. “The pasta is nothing special. It tastes so bland. I don’t think we should let her taste it. We’ll just waste time and money on this.”

Dabin stared at Jaemin as if he had grown two heads, he was indeed being weird. He was looking at her too, trying to send her signals with his eyes. The female did not fully grasp what the signal had meant yet she had an inkling. Or maybe she was just exaggerating things and making them seem better than they were because she was trying to comfort herself.

“No. I don’t even think she likes the steak.” Sera frowned. “This is like the best of the best seafood pasta around the University. I’m going to call the waiter.”

“N-no need,” Dabin grabbed on Sera’s arm. “I-I actually wanted to eat the steak… I cannot eat the pasta.”

“Don’t lie to me,” Sera spoke in a stern voice. “I know you are overly sensitive and considerate but food is food and you like to eat, am I right? I’m going to buy it for you, Jaemin does not have to pay for it.”

“N-no!” Dabin immediately shook her head. She did not know if she should continue but feeling that Jaemin was watching her and anticipating what she was about to say next was giving her more courage. With a soft, soft voice, she decided to continue in a very small voice, “I-I am actually allergic to seafood.”

“What?!” Sera could not help but to shriek. She looked scandalized. “Then, you’re lucky that Jaemin spilled his drink on your pasta or you would have forced yourself to eat that. Goodness, how come I didn’t know about this when we’re friends from childhood? You could have—”

Sera was nagging so much Jeno, Renjun, and Hina had to calm her down yet Dabin failed to find herself actually processing what her best friend was saying. She had another concern of her own. She did not know how to feel about Jaemin’s actions. Although they seemed clear, they gave vague signals. Was he just being nice because he knew about Dabin’s condition? Or was it just really an accident?

Dabin could not be sure because there were really things that her best friend did not know but her ex-boyfriend did—just like her being allergic to seafood.

So, was it very delusional of her to hope that even just a little—a teensy weensy amount—that Jaemin, maybe not as much as before, still cared about her? Perhaps, it was an impossible scenario, a lost case, but deep inside, she hoped that it was true… because he actually remembered.


	4. Chapter 2.5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Of becoming close...

No one knew exactly how, why, or when it had begun. Before they were even fully aware, both Jaemin and Dabin were already very comfortable with one another. Like usual, they were reading while talking to one another over a strawberry milkshake (for Dabin) and an Americano (for Jaemin) during that one Friday afternoon. It had become a habit. Although they had not set a certain schedule, they would still meet at least thrice a week on an afternoon as if they had previously set an appointment. Even when the café was not packed, they would sit across each other. Hence, Dabin would always look around the café whenever she entered the said place, usually, the guy would enthusiastically wave his hand to get her attention or vice versa (except she would just stare at him before giving him a timid smile).

“We’ll be second year in high school soon,” Jaemin spoke up. During their casual conversations, they found out they were in the same year and were actually the same age. (“You’re in 1st grade in high school? Cool, me too!” Jaemin once exclaimed in glee. “You’re born on July? Aw… I’m not older than you. I was born on August.” The boy sulked about the age difference even if the female was barely a month older.) “Will you still study in your school? Why not try to grab a scholarship from my school?”

Dabin shook her head. “Ace High School is just a dream,” she said in her usual soft voice. “Maybe I’ll try to enter in college.”

Jaemin pouted. “I thought we’d be classmates. That’s a pity. Then, I’ll wait for college to be in the same school as you,” he proudly told her, resembling a kid and that made the female laugh—almost like a giggle.

“We can still meet here though,” the female said, trying to appease the sulky male.

The male was across her, resting his face on his right palm with his lips still as pouty as ever when he talked. “But we’ll be busy when school comes. Will you surely come here during your free time? It’s really fun talking to you even if you don’t talk that much.”

“Why?” Dabin did not know why she asked that. She was confused as to why Jaemin would love talking to her. She was not ignorant, she heard about Jaemin’s achievements and about him in general. She knew he was better off with friends better than she was.

“What do you mean ‘why’? You listen well and although I wish you speak more, hearing you speak is like a reward. It is fun,” Jaemin replied with a grin, wiping off his pout completely.

Ah… he was still having fun. Dabin understood that Jaemin might find this whole ordeal as a kind of a game. It was something he would throw away—he would throw her away eventually. But, that did not make her sad. People tend to throw useless things away after some time. Still, Dabin felt no offense because for once in her life, she felt like she belonged in one place. If she would end up being thrown away no matter what, she would rather enjoy things as they were.

“Here.” Jaemin once gave Dabin a tiramisu that he made, successfully concealing it from the workers (“foods from outside are not allowed”, the sign on the door clearly stated). 

“Keep it and eat it when you get home,” he told her in a hush whisper, ushering her to keep the container with tiramisu.

“W-what is this for?” Dabin stuttered, hiding the container despite her surprise.

“Just a gift from me.” Jaemin grinned, eyes were twinkling. “I accidentally made too much and it would be such a waste to throw away, right?”

Of course, it was strange that someone would accidentally make too much dessert but not completely impossible either. “T-thank you,” Dabin thanked him. “I don’t have anything for you though.”

Jaemin shook his head, his sweet smile continued to adorn his face. “That’s completely fine. I gave you that because I want to, not because I want something from you,” he assured her, sipping on his ice Americano as he did so. “So don’t be bothered by it.”

“Do you like sweet things?” It was one of the rare questions that came from Dabin since Jaemin would singlehandedly carry the conversation.

Looking so sure, the male nodded his head. “Yeah, sweets are the best. I like making desserts and eating them. My friends and I would usually hang out to make sweets. Many actually thought that it was a very girly hobby but we really enjoyed it. And, where on Earth did we get the idea that making sweets are only for girls? That’s very childish.”

Dabin could not help but to laugh as she listened to Jaemin’s blabber. It was one of those things that made them closer to one another.

More than Jaemin’s endless babbling and his homemade tiramisu, what probably pushed them closer to one another was actually Dabin. The school year just started but it did not lessen the pressure that Jaemin was receiving. It was suffocating, he admitted when the two of them met one day. The male did try to mask his worries with a smile yet because his smile never reached his eyes, the female instantly knew that something was wrong.

“You don’t look good,” Dabin spoke when she settled down on her seat right across Jaemin. “Is something wrong? Y-you can tell me.” She struggled to not stutter simply because she was afraid that she might appear to be nosy. The only source of her courage was the fact that she wanted to be there for her friend.

Jaemin looked at her with a stiff smile. However, he was not able to continue sporting that forced smile as he was staring right at Dabin’s concerned eyes. He dropped his smile eventually and let out a sigh. “I think you’ve heard about it but there’s another Math Olympiad competition coming around, right?” He was muttering that Dabin had to strain her ears to listen. “I know I should be used to this but all those expectations are suffocating.” He even let out a bitter chuckle. “But I’ll be fine, really.”

“Do you want to go somewhere else?” There was a pause when the female realized what she just said—she did not know where she got that from, the courage was unexpected. “I mean, we can take a breather by walking in the park or something,” she hastily added.

The male looked like he had calmed down even just a little so he spoke with a tiny, tiny smile on his face. “Let’s go.”

Before the two knew it, they were walking around mindlessly in Seoul. They did nothing but to talk and to eat like close friends would do. They did not know then how one another had become important for each other.

**Author's Note:**

> Updates every Monday;; This story is also posted in Asianfanfics and updates every Saturday


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